The Washington Wizards could be propped up as exhibit A in an argument for the existence of curses, voodoo and black magic.

Once again, the Wizards tried to field a team with Jerry Stackhouse, Gilbert Arenas and Larry Hughes ? who missed 19 games with a fractured wrist before returning yesterday ? in the lineup, and once again they were thwarted.

Arenas, who missed 26 games with a severely strained abdominal muscle and groin injury, stuck around for just 22 scoreless minutes before leaving the game with a sprained right ankle (X-rays were negative) as the Miami Heat manhandled the Wizards 101-81. Washington was denied a three-game winning streak for the seventh time this season.

Through 69 games, Stackhouse (who only has played 18 games because of knee surgery), Arenas and Hughes have played just 11 games together.

"Somehow I knew. I knew it," Arenas said, fighting back laughter over the threesome's bad luck. "You get in a rhythm. It was my turn. I guess we're allowed to have two at a time. It was my turn to go out, and when I come back somebody else is going down. That's how it feels right now. I mean, I don't know what to say."